The Daily Gazette reported Saturday that Kohan, also known as Mehran Kohansieh, was close to buying the mall and attracting new tenants. The Long Island-based businessman could not be reached Saturday for comment.

The company website states the company "sees the future of aging malls as a place of mixed use that is more than just for shopping" and of "social settings where people interact with one another and small businesses can get a boost in a public and well-trafficked platform." It indicates KRIG has mall projects in Florida, Nebraska, Virginia and Oklahoma.

In September, Kohan told the Chicago Tribune that he takes distressed properties and tries to revitalize them. The Macerich Co. bought the mall along with 12 other shopping centers for $2.33 billion from the Wilmorite Corp. in 2005. The Wilton Mall, which is not for sale, was purchased in the same transaction.

"They are talking to interested buyers, but nobody has closed yet," said Gillen of Macerich.

Right now, Sears, Macy's and Kmart are the anchor stores at Rotterdam Square.

Rotterdam Supervisor Harry Buffardi said Saturday that section of town could benefit from a supermarket. "We would certainly like to see a grocery store in that part of town," said Buffardi.

Earlier this month, the mall was briefly listed on an auction site before being pulled. The opening bid was to be $2 million.

The mall has 583,937 square feet of leasable space that is 86.9 percent occupied, according to a listing on real estate website Loop.net. Other major tenants include TJ Maxx, Shoe Department Encore and Rotterdam Square Cinema.

All except for TJ Maxx are said to have substantial time left on their leases, the listing said. TJ Maxx's lease expires in November 2014, while Sears has almost five years left on its lease, which expires in August 2018. The listing didn't include Macy's, which also operates a department store at the mall.